Animal Info - Pileated Gibbon

(Other Names: Capped, Crowned or Indo-Chinese Lar Gibbon; Gibón de Cresta Negra)

Hylobates pileatus (H. lar p.)

Status: Vulnerable

1. Profile (Picture)
2. Tidbits
3. Status and Trends (IUCN Status, Countries Where Currently Found, Population Estimates, History of Distribution, Threats and Reasons for Decline)
4. Data on Biology and Ecology (Weight, Habitat, Gestation Period, Birth Rate, Maximum Age, Diet, Behavior, Minimum Viable Population)
5. References

Profile

Pictures: Infant Male Pileated Gibbon (26 Kb JPEG) and Adult Female Pileated Gibbon (21 Kb JPEG) (Gibbon Res. Lab)

The pileated gibbon is arboreal and diurnal and weighs 8 kg (18 lb). It is found in a wide variety of primary forest habitats where it eats mostly fruit and some leaves.

A single young is usually born every 2 - 3 years.

Since the 1940's, the pileated gibbon has generally been thought to occur in Cambodia, Laos and Thailand. It has declined due to habitat loss and hunting for food and the pet market.

Tidbits

*** The response of gibbons to habitat modification is not clear. Gibbons in Thailand do not use patches of selectively logged forest adjacent to occupied primary forest, probably because the animals are shot for food or for sale. (Humphrey & Bain 1990)

Status and Trends

IUCN Status:

1960's: Indeterminate
1970's - 1994: Endangered
1996 - 2004: Vulnerable (Criteria: A1cd+2cd) (IUCN 2004)

Countries Where the Pileated Gibbon Is Currently Found:

2004: Occurs in Cambodia, Laos and Thailand. (IUCN 2004)

Population Estimates:

[Note: Figures given are for wild populations only.]

WORLD
- 1975: 43,200 (Humphrey & Bain 1990)
- 1977: 100,000 ("may be too high") (Nowak & Paradiso 1983)
Cambodia
- 1975: 28,800 (Humphrey & Bain 1990)
Laos
- 1975: 800 (Humphrey & Bain 1990)
Thailand
- Before deforestation began: Possibly 2 - 3 million (Humphrey & Bain 1990)
- 1975: 13,600 (Humphrey & Bain 1990)

History of Distribution:

1947: Cambodia, Cochin-China and Siam (IUCN 1969)
1951: Cambodia and southern Laos, west of the Mekong (IUCN 1969)
1972: Cambodia, Laos and Thailand (Curry-Lindahl 1972)
1984: Cambodia west of the Mekong and southeastern Thailand (Macdonald 1984)
1987: Western Cambodia, southwestern Laos and Thailand, and possibly in South Vietnam (Burton & Pearson 1987)
1990: Cambodia, Laos and Thailand (Humphrey & Bain 1990)
1996: Cambodia, Laos and Thailand (IUCN 1996)
2004: Cambodia, Laos and Thailand (IUCN 2004)

Threats and Reasons for Decline:

Reasons for the decline of the pileated gibbon include habitat loss, especially due to logging and agriculture, as well as hunting for food and the pet market.

Data on Biology and Ecology

Weight:

The pileated gibbon weighs about 8 kg (18 lb).

Habitat:

The pileated gibbon is found in a wide variety of primary forest habitats, including rainforest, evergreen and mixed deciduous-evergreen forest.

The pileated gibbon is one of the species that live in the Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot (Cons. Intl.).

Gestation Period:

7 - 8 months.

Birth Rate:

A single young is usually born. There are 2 - 3 years between births.

Maximum Age:

34 years (captivity).

Diet:

The pileated gibbon eats mostly fruit and some leaves.

Behavior:

All gibbons are arboreal and diurnal.

Minimum Viable Population:

Minimum viable population density: 2 individuals/sq km (5.2 individuals/sq mi) (Silva & Downing 1994).

References

Burton & Pearson 1987, Cons. Intl., Curry-Lindahl 1972, Gibbon Res. Lab, Humphrey & Bain 1990, IUCN 1969, IUCN 1994, IUCN 1996, IUCN 2000, IUCN 2003a, IUCN 2004, Macdonald 1984. Nowak & Paradiso 1983, Silva & Downing 1994

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